


to wear love on your skin

by acefluff



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, AroAce Jihoon, Aromantic, Asexuality, Bisexual Wonwoo, Break Up, Cheating, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Tattoos, Unrequited Love, but not really, chan and seok are platonic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2018-03-31
Packaged: 2018-12-26 01:47:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12048774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acefluff/pseuds/acefluff
Summary: Everyone is born with a unique tattoo, and when you fall in love with someone their tattoo appears somewhere on your body.Children speculate over the tattoos they'll get one day.Some people fall in love too easily and too often.Some people never get tattoos while others get theirs.A fan notices their tattoo on a celebrity after they meet.Some people have to hide new tattoos from their partners.Some people try to hide the tattoos of the people who broke their hearts.Old friends compare tattoos in a retirement home.One shots based on a Tumblr post





	1. imminent

**Author's Note:**

> I picture the tattoos as being constellations similar to this: 
> 
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BX0Nn4pHe1s/?hl=en&taken-by=playground_tat2
> 
> Also, any girls names are random, they're not supposed to be girl group members.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hansol and Seungkwan.
> 
> It was imminent.

Hansol and Seungkwan had lived on the same street since before they could walk and their mothers had often pushed them together for playdates before they’d started going to school. These playdates usually ended in tears because Hansol didn’t like how loud and boisterous Seungkwan could get and Seungkwan got upset that Hansol was more interested in building Lego than playing pretend games. 

Things changed when they started kindergarten and didn’t know anybody but each other. Instead of teasing and fighting they protected each other and stuck together. They were a comfort to each other, being the only familiar faces in a sea of strangers. 

They spent afternoons and weekends together, and when they got older they walked to and from school together every day. Hansol and Seungkwan were inseparable. 

When they were six years old they compared tattoos. Hansol’s was on his left shoulder blade, Seungkwan’s was on the palm of his right hand. They memorised each other’s tattoos and contemplated where they would rather they be located. 

(Hansol said on his forearm so he could see it. Seungkwan said on the back of his hand because it was less likely to get dirty.)

 

 

They were nine years old when Seungkwan’s eldest sister got her first tattoo. 

They sat on the swings in the park down the road from their houses, eating ice cream and trying not to let it drip too much. It was summer, so they could happily spend all day together doing whatever they wanted. 

Seungkwan held his ice cream up to lick the drips on the side of the cone, resulting in a blob of chocolatey ice cream on his nose. Hansol wiped it off with his sleeve. 

“My sister got a tattoo.”

Seungkwan’s announcement came from nowhere, and Hansol wasn’t sure what to say about it except, “Oh.”

“It’s her boyfriend’s.”

Hansol just nodded and carried on catching dripping ice cream with his tongue. 

“I asked her when they’re going to get married but she said this isn’t the only one she’ll have, can you believe that?” Seungkwan laughed. “She loves him but she thinks she’ll love someone else later, how weird is that?”

Hansol shrugged. “I dunno. Maybe she’s right. My mum has tattoos from people other than my dad, and my dad has one that isn’t my mum’s. Most people have more than one other person’s.”

Seungkwan frowned. “Really? My mum and dad only have each other’s.”

It was a reasonable assumption for a child to have, that you would fall in love with someone and that would be it, especially if the child’s parents only had two tattoos each; their own and one other. But Hansol knew that was not how it worked. He was more observant than most children his age, and he thought more deeply about things. He’d noticed his parents’ tattoos when he was hardly old enough to properly comprehend the complexity of multiple tattoos, but he understood what they represented. 

Hansol’s parents had explained to him that sometimes, just as you can fall in love, you can fall out of love, and that was why they had tattoos that belonged to other people, but that didn’t mean they loved each other any less. Hansol made sense of this by thinking of how he felt when he got a new Lego set and later got less enthusiastic about it when there was another, newer, Lego set to replace it. 

But Seungkwan had never been exposed to the idea of multiple tattoos and falling out of love, so the thought that it was a possibility seemed to change everything. He’d seen movies where people broke up, so he knew it happened and that it was something sad but he’d always felt confident that he would never have to deal with it because he was sure that he would only love the right person.

Seungkwan frowned at his shoes and scuffed them against the sand under the swing he was sitting on.

“You okay?” Hansol asked as he wiped his sticky fingers on his shorts. They needed a wash anyway. 

“How many tattoos do you think you’ll end up having?”

“I’ve never really thought about it. Why?”

Seungkwan sighed and started kicking his legs to move the swing. 

“It’s just… I always thought I’d just have mine and one other,” he explained.

“Really?”

“That’s all my parents have.”

Hansol wasn’t sure what to say to make his best friend feel better. He felt bad that he was responsible for Seungkwan’s disappointment, but he was just being honest.

“Maybe you will just have one, but it’s not a bad thing to have more. I’m sure I’ll probably get more than one.”

Seungkwan sighed and kicked his legs harder to swing higher. “I guess.”

They sat in silence for a bit before Seungkwan asked, “How old do you think we’ll be?”

“When we get someone’s tattoo?”

“Yeah.”

Hansol started kicking his legs to swing next to Seungkwan, trying to match the pace. 

“I’ve never thought of that either,” he admitted. “Maybe in high school, maybe after that.”

Seungkwan contemplated this. 

“My parents got each other’s in high school. I hope I do too.”

Hansol frowned. “Why do you want to fall in love so badly?”

Seungkwan shrugged. “It seems nice.”

 

 

As Seungkwan got older he spent less time worrying that he would get more than one person’s tattoo and more time worrying that he wouldn’t get any at all. His sisters had both already gotten someone’s tattoo by the time they were his age, while he still only had his own. 

Hansol got one when he was almost seventeen, and his prediction that he would get more than just one was confirmed after Seungkwan urged him to confess his feelings and his girlfriend, Yerin, admitted that she didn’t feel the same way and stopped seeing him. 

Seungkwan felt responsible for his friend’s breakup, but Hansol assured him that it wasn’t his fault and that if it was meant to be then she wouldn’t have broken up with him. 

“It probably wouldn’t have worked out even if I hadn’t told her that I loved her,” he said to Seungkwan while they were wasting time on the same swings in the park down the road one afternoon. “She was kind of insecure sometimes.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… I feel like, if we’d stayed together, she would’ve maybe become one of those girlfriends that assumes the worst a lot, you know?”

Seungkwan nodded, but he wasn’t really sure what Hansol meant by that. 

Hansol didn’t tell Seungkwan that Yerin had said she felt she came second to Seungkwan, and that sometimes she thought her boyfriend would rather be dating his best friend than her.

 

 

Hansol wasn’t too bothered by the breakup. He sulked for a few days but after that it was like he’d never had a girlfriend and in the months that followed he merely carried on as he had been before, not actively seeking out love but being open to the possibility. Seungkwan, on the other hand, was growing impatient. He wanted to fall in love and have someone’s tattoo (and know that someone had his) to show off to the world. His parents had met in high school, so surely that meant that he was likely to meet his true love in high school too? 

Hansol had to remind him that’s not how it worked. 

That didn’t stop Seungkwan from hoping and being impatient though. 

 

 

They’d always been inseparable, but somehow they managed to start spending even more time together during their last year of high school. Hansol, always the thinker, suspected it was because they realised, at least subconsciously, that after this year they didn’t know what would happen. They’d applied to the same universities, but who knew if they would actually get accepted to the same ones or if they would be forced to go their separate ways? 

The thought terrified both of them, as they’d never gone more than a few days without seeing each other since they were toddlers, but they never talked about it. Hansol felt it would be better to talk when they knew what was going to happen for sure and Seungkwan knew it would be an emotional conversation and wanted to avoid it for as long as possible. 

But even though they didn’t discuss the future Hansol found the thought of life without Seungkwan creeping in more and more often. Obviously that was not something he wanted, but he decided to leave the future up to fate rather than try and intervene, because that never worked anyway.

Maybe it was because they were spending more time together than usual, maybe it was the fear of not being together, Hansol wasn’t sure, but he felt… different about Seungkwan now. Seungkwan wasn’t just his best friend who he disliked the thought of being away from. He started to feel like he would not be able to physically cope with being away from Seungkwan for an extended period of time. The thought alone made his chest ache. 

He came to this realisation when he and Seungkwan were doing homework one afternoon. It was their routine, so familiar after almost twelve years, and the thought of it possibly ending with high school made Hansol want to press pause so he wouldn’t get any closer to the end of the year. 

The next day Hansol found a constellation on the sole of his left foot when he was pulling a sock on. 

It was Seungkwan’s tattoo.

 

 

Seungkwan also noticed his feelings change as the year progressed. Like Hansol, he had a moment where he realised he never wanted to be without his best friend. 

It was the day they each received their first university letter. It was from one of the school’s they’d both applied to. 

“Do you think it’s an acceptance or a rejection?” Seungkwan asked, nervously tapping the still sealed envelope against his leg. 

“No idea,” Hansol replied, almost sighing the words out in his own state of anxiety. “Should we open them together?”

Seungkwan nodded and started tearing his letter open. 

When they’d both read their letters they made eye contact, trying not to give anything away.

“Well?” Seungkwan asked. 

“You first.”

Seungkwan just shook his head. Hansol’s face fell.

For the first time it really sunk in that after never knowing a life without each other they might be forced apart by something out of their control. 

Lying in bed that night, Seungkwan imagined what it would be like to go to classes and study and play videos games without Hansol. The thought was unbearable, and he fell asleep hugging his pillow and trying not to cry. 

When he got dressed the next morning he noticed a constellation just below his left clavicle while buttoning up his school shirt. 

It was Hansol’s tattoo. 

 

Neither boy knew that the other had his tattoo. 

Seungkwan was worried that Hansol would end their friendship if he found out that Seungkwan was in love with him. Hansol worried that Seungkwan, determined to have only one other person’s tattoo, would be disappointed. 

It was easy to keep their tattoos covered during the winter when they were always wearing clothes that easily covered them up. When it started getting warmer it became more of a challenge. Seungkwan made sure he only wore shirts with a high neckline, or wore hoodies even if it was hot, and Hansol always wore sneakers so that even if he had to take his shoes off he’d still have socks on. 

As the summer crept closer Hansol began considering telling Seungkwan about his tattoo. He was frightened that Seungkwan wouldn’t react well, but keeping the tattoo to himself was driving him crazy. 

 

 

They were back on the swings in the park down the road. 

They’d heard back from all but one of universities they’d applied to, and all the ones that had accepted one of them had not accepted the other. 

When they were younger they’d talked about sharing a dorm and later an apartment, getting part time jobs and going to parties. But now they contemplated which schools were closest together, which could they travel between easily, which had the same vacation times. If they couldn’t go to the same university they were going to make sure they could still spend as much time together as possible. They would make it work. 

Hansol didn’t mean to just blurt it out. He wanted to tell Seungkwan about his tattoo at the right time, but he suddenly worried that the summer would pass, they would go their separate ways, and he would’ve been too scared to say anything. 

Before he was even aware that he was saying anything he’d interrupted Seungkwan’s musings on the travel costs of visiting each other with, “I have your tattoo.”

Seungkwan stopped talking and stared at him with an expression of so many emotions that Hansol wasn’t sure what he was seeing. 

“It’s under my foot,” he continued when Seungkwan didn’t say anything. “It’s been a few months now and I’ve been wanting to tell you but I was worried that maybe you’d get upset.”

Seungkwan didn’t say anything as he reached up to unzip his hoodie. Hansol stopped rambling and watched nervously. Seungkwan pulled the hoodie off and pulled down the collar of his shirt, just enough that Hansol could see the top of a tattoo peeking out. 

“It’s yours,” said Seungkwan. “I didn’t want to say anything…”

Hansol reached out a hand, pulled Seungkwan’s hand away from his collar and intertwined his fingers with the other boy’s.

He smiled. “You have your one other tattoo now.”

Seungkwan laughed, giddy at the implication that it would be his only other tattoo. “And you have your probably-more-than-one.”

Hansol tugged Seungkwan up from the swing he was sitting on and pulled him in for a hug.

“I guess I love you.”

“I guess I love you, too.”

“But what about university?”

Hansol shrugged. “We’ll figure it out. I promise.”

 

 

When they got home later their last university letters were waiting for them. 

They were both acceptance letters.


	2. ultimate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Soonyoung. 
> 
> He waited for the ultimate.

Soonyoung’s mother worried about him. 

All mothers worried, it was part of the job, but she was sure she was the only person who worried that her child was too loving. It didn’t sound like it should be a problem, but she lost sleep over the idea that her son could be taken advantage of or hurt because of his loving nature. 

Soonyoung had always been this way. This was by no means a bad thing, his mother was glad that her son was kind to the other children at daycare and never terrorised the cat and even tried to take care of his older sister sometimes. She was proud that he cared so deeply for other people.

But that didn’t stop her from worrying that this caring sort of love would change as he grew older, that Soonyoung’s general love and kindness would cause him to fall in love too easily. 

She worried that her son being so quick to love meant that he would be left heartbroken and depressed, that he would lose his spark, especially as the other children at his new school weren’t all that nice to him. She worried that too much rejection would break him.

But Soonyoung was strong. 

Soonyoung was ten years old the first time someone else’s tattoo appeared on his skin, much earlier than the average person. It was his childhood best friend’s tattoo. 

Soonyoung’s mother noticed it when he was sitting at the kitchen table, leaning over homework while she cooked dinner.

“Soonyoungie, what’s this?” She gently pulled the collar of his shirt down to reveal the tattoo that had been peaking out from where it was hiding, on the left side of the nape of his neck. 

Soonyoung looked up in confusion. “What’s what?”

His mother sighed. He was too young to be falling in love. 

“Did you know you had someone else’s mark?”

Soonyoung’s eyes lit up in excitement. “Really? I have a tattoo?”

She nodded and asked who he thought it belonged to. 

“Probably Dongho-hyung. He always comes to sit with me at recess, even though he’s in the year above now. And he tells the other kids off if they laugh at me.”

For a child, having a friend who protected you was reason enough to fall in love. Soonyoung never acted on it, he knew that wouldn’t be a good idea, but he liked having a tattoo that showed he loved someone.

 

 

It was a few years before Soonyoung got another tattoo. 

He was thirteen and this one he noticed straight away because it was on the back of his left hand. He stared at it and watched it move as he clenched his fist and then splayed his fingers out. The constellation looked like shooting stars when he did that. He was thrilled.

This tattoo belonged to the new girl at school, Minah. 

On her first day, after the introductions, she sat next to him in class. It was the only available seat, but she smiled at him as she sat down so he felt like she had _chosen _him. She helped him with the maths problems he struggled with and let him use her nice colouring pencils and even laughed at his jokes that the other kids told him were stupid.__

__One afternoon he stopped in the doorway as he was leaving the classroom because he heard her talking to some of the other girls in the hallway._ _

__The other girls were asking about him._ _

__“What’s it like sitting next to Soonyoung?”  
“Isn’t he weird?”_ _

__“Don’t you think his eyes make him look ugly?”_ _

__The girls laughed, and Soonyoung’s stomach dropped. They couldn’t see him from where he was standing so he kept still to hear what Minah would say. She was new, so she’d probably just laugh and agree with them so that she could fit in._ _

__Soonyoung tried to convince himself that he wouldn’t be angry if she did agree with them. He knew that fitting in was difficult, he had never succeeded, so he could understand if she talked behind his back to get along with the other girls._ _

__He could say that he wouldn’t be angry, but he’d still be hurt. So he braced himself, wrapped his arms around his torso, and waited to hear Minah agree that he was weird and ugly._ _

__But she didn’t._ _

__“Soonyoung is really cool! He’s very kind, I don’t understand why everyone treats him like they do. And I like his eyes, I think they’re pretty.”_ _

__And then she walked away from the girls. She passed the doorway where Soonyoung was hiding but she didn’t see him. He was glad; he didn’t want her to know he’d been eavesdropping, especially when she’d just said nice things about him._ _

__He spent the rest of the day trying not to smile too much, and the next morning he woke up with what he could only assume was her tattoo on his hand._ _

__His mother smiled when he showed her but he noticed a slight sadness in her eyes. He didn’t question her on it._ _

__When Minah noticed her tattoo on Soonyoung’s hand she smiled._ _

__He blushed and pulled his sleeve down to cover it, mumbling apologies as he did so._ _

__She shook her head. “It’s okay, you don’t have to try and hide it.”_ _

__He avoided her gaze by staring at the calculation he was struggling with._ _

__He mumbled, “It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way. I’ll understand.”_ _

__Mina sighed. “I’m flattered, but…”_ _

__“Don’t worry about it.”_ _

__“I’m sorry. It’s just… We’re _thirteen _, Soonyoung. I care about you and you’re my friend but I don’t think of you like that.”___ _

____“You’re not angry? And you don’t hate me?”_ _ _ _

____“Of course not.”_ _ _ _

____He looked up at her and smiled and she smiled back._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____Soonyoung acquired quite a few more tattoos in high school, fortunately they were more discreetly placed so that his uniform hid them. Minah was understanding and sweet when she saw her tattoo on his hand, but he knew not everyone would be, especially when a few of the tattoos belonged to people in relationships._ _ _ _

____Soonyoung was never jealous when he loved someone. He never tried to win people over or get them to fall in love with him because he knew he fell in love too easily and too often, and if he went after everyone he loved he’d be constantly heartbroken._ _ _ _

____He was sixteen with ten tattoos when he decided not to pursue a romantic relationship unless I knew the other person had his tattoo, because then he’d know they were the right person. He needed to have some insurance, and that was it._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____By the time he was finishing college, Soonyoung had so many tattoos he could hardly remember all of them anymore, which made him sad. He’d cared enough for all these people to have their tattoos appear on his body and yet he couldn’t remember all of them, how they had shaped his life, how he felt when he loved them._ _ _ _

____Some of them he could never forget; Minah’s on his hand, his first boyfriend’s on his hip, Dongho’s on the back of his neck. But the others, the ones from short-lived loves, on his foot, his chest, his ribs, his bicep, he couldn’t remember. He tried to forget about the tattoos of people who turned out to be assholes, and when he did forget he wished he hadn’t._ _ _ _

____His mother’s concerns that he would live a life of heartbreak were all for nothing because Soonyoung tended to move on as just as quickly as he fell in love. This was partially due to his personal insurance policy of never pursuing anyone, and partially due to his ability to always remain friends with the people he fell in love with. Things didn’t change at all in the process of him falling in and out of love with someone, he always managed to go undiscovered (provided the tattoo could be easily covered), and so when that love faded and a new one sparked to life nobody suspected a thing. It also helped that people knew him to be naturally friendly and kind, so his behaviour never gave him away either._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____Soonyoung was almost twenty-eight when he met Hyunmi. They met at the dance school they both worked at, and she only two tattoos aside from her own._ _ _ _

____She was one of the few people who didn’t make assumptions or immediately think Soonyoung was stupid or gullible when she saw all his tattoos. She reminded him of Minah sometimes because she liked his jokes and had the same kind heart. They became friends almost instantly._ _ _ _

____Hyunmi was exactly the kind of person that Soonyoung expected to fall in love with, but he didn’t. For some reason his feeling for her remained completely platonic, and she felt the same way about him, and this mutually agreed upon friendship and passion for dancing resulted in them spending a lot of time together._ _ _ _

____They danced together for a showcase and all the other dancers talked about the chemistry they had, how well they moved together. They were asked multiple times if they were a couple and every time they answered that they were just friends. The idea of them dating never crossed their minds, they were both happy just being friends and dance partners._ _ _ _

____On most days they left the studio together in the afternoon to get lunch and they opened up to each other on the nights they stayed late to rehearse after all their students left. They compared tattoos (Soonyoung’s took a lot longer) and talked about what their dream had been as a kid and their plans for the future. Hyunmi wanted to go to the United States and work for a renowned studio there. Soonyoung was happy where he was, but he wouldn’t say no if he got the chance for something better._ _ _ _

____Soonyoung usually didn’t get to know people as well as he got to know Hyunmi, and maybe that was because unlike a lot of the people he’d spent time with before he wasn’t in love with her. A lot of the people he wanted to be close to he couldn’t be completely honest with or he’d have ended up revealing his true feelings, so many of his friendships stayed quite casual, but he could talk to Hyunmi about anything because he had nothing to hide._ _ _ _

____One night they talked about marriage._ _ _ _

____“My mum keeps trying to set me up on blind dates,” Hyunmi complained as she retied her ponytail, scraping back the stray hairs framing her face. “She won’t stop going on about me getting older and not being married yet.”_ _ _ _

____Soonyoung frowned, pressing his cold water bottle against his forehead to cool down. “But you’re not old.”_ _ _ _

____She scoffed. “I know, but my mum had already had two children by the time she was my age so she thinks I need to get on that now.”_ _ _ _

____“Do you even want kids?” Soonyoung asked, trying not to laugh. He couldn’t picture independent, active Hyunmi being a mother. Not that he didn’t think she’d be a good one, she just didn’t seem the type; she liked her freedom too much._ _ _ _

____“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I’d have to stop dancing if I got pregnant. I’ll get old and have to stop one day anyway, so I’d rather not waste time while I’m young.”_ _ _ _

____Soonyoung choked on the water he was drinking because he started laughing._ _ _ _

____“What about you?” she asked, smiling gently, her head tilted in curiosity._ _ _ _

____Soonyoung shrugged. “I like kids but I don’t really want any of my own. And my sister already has kids so my mum can’t even manipulate me with the ‘no grandchildren’ thing.”_ _ _ _

____“My mum tries that on me anyway,” Hyunmi complained. She heaved a sigh. “Let’s keep going, we’re almost done choreographing this.”_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____Hyunmi rushed into the studio one morning with the biggest grin on her lips, clutching a piece of paper and breathing heavily._ _ _ _

____“Did you _run _here?” Soonyoung asked, looking up from where he was finalising the monthly class schedule behind the counter.___ _ _ _

______Hyunmi nodded, gasping to catch her breath._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Why?” he asked, trying not to laugh._ _ _ _ _ _

______Hyunmi merely waved the piece of paper in front of Soonyoung’s face._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung took the paper from her, scanning it quickly before looking up at her in shock. It was a recruitment notice from the American studio she wanted to join._ _ _ _ _ _

______“They’re having auditions?” he asked._ _ _ _ _ _

______She nodded excitedly. “I’m going to do it.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung walked around the counter to hug his dance partner._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m so proud of you!” he exclaimed._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Chill,” she laughed, pulling away from the hug. “I haven’t even sent an audition tape yet, and who knows if I’ll actually get in?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“You will.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______She rolled her eyes. “Thanks for the confidence vote.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Anytime.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Hyunmi needed to submit both a solo dance and a partnered dance for her audition, and Soonyoung happily agreed to help her choreograph both and be her audition partner._ _ _ _ _ _

______They started spending more time at the studio after hours to choreograph and perfect both dances in time to record them so they could be sent off before the submission deadline._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung half expected to find himself falling in love with her, but nothing changed. Their relationship stayed platonic, no matter how many nights they stayed late at the studio, danced together, and opened their hearts to each other._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______One night, about a month after Hyunmi sent her audition tapes, Soonyoung heard a knock on his door. It was late and he knew he hadn’t made plans with anyone, so he reluctantly left the couch to answer the door. He’d barely unlocked it and was just about to peer out through the crack when the door was pushed open from the outside and Hyunmi rushed in, not noticing she’d nearly slammed the door into her friend’s face, excitedly waving her cellphone at him._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung closed the door before turning to Hyunmi and placing his hands on her shoulders in an attempt to calm her down._ _ _ _ _ _

______“It’s almost midnight, what are you doing here?” he asked._ _ _ _ _ _

______“The studio emailed me,” she said, smiling brightly, tears in her eyes. “I got in. I’m going to America.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______A wave of mixed emotions surged up in Soonyoung’s chest. He was happy for her, she had worked so hard and now her dream was coming true, but she was his best friend and she was going to leave. He was proud, but also selfishly upset._ _ _ _ _ _

______But he just smiled and pulled her in for a hug, congratulated her, and kept smiling even though he kind of wanted to cry._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Everything after that seemed to happen so quickly, and all too soon it was Hyunmi’s last night in Seoul._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung had done as much as he could to help her prepare to leave. He spent a weekend packing up her apartment with her. He went shopping with her to help her choose a new suitcase. He helped her take boxes of things she wouldn’t need in America to be donated or put in storage. He helped her with her visa application._ _ _ _ _ _

______He borrowed a friend’s car so he could drive her to the airport and he tried not to cry when she checked in and waved to him from the gate._ _ _ _ _ _

______When her plane had taken off and he was back in the car Soonyoung allowed himself a few minutes to sit in silence and cry, because his best friend was gone and nothing would be the same._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______The next morning Soonyoung woke up with a new tattoo on the palm of his left hand._ _ _ _ _ _

______It was Hyunmi’s._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______It was easy enough to hide the tattoo from her. When they FaceTimed he’d make sure to either not lift his hand or have his long sleeve covering the tattoo._ _ _ _ _ _

______Every time they talked Soonyoung realised how much he missed her. He thought he was happy at the studio, happy to live in Seoul, happy to just be dancing, but without Hyunmi it felt like there was something missing._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung never told her this, because she was always so happy when they spoke and he didn’t want to make her regret leaving just because he was being selfish._ _ _ _ _ _

______He wanted to show her the tattoo, but that went against his rules, his insurance policy to avoid heartbreak. Soonyoung also didn’t want to get caught up in a web of lies if he said it belonged to someone else, so not saying anything was the best idea as far as he could tell._ _ _ _ _ _

______Sometime in the months after Hyunmi left, Soonyoung realised that the reason he thought he’d achieved his life’s dream was all to do with her. When he first started at the studio just being there was his dream, but as he got to know her and spend more time with her she made his dream the great thing it was. He could’ve been dancing anywhere, and as long as it was with her he would’ve be happy. Hyunmi made everything better. Now that she was gone he didn’t feel the same excitement of going to the studio every day, he never stayed after hours, he never did partnered dances._ _ _ _ _ _

______He wanted to be with her and he wanted to be that passionate about his job again._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Summer meant no long sleeves so Soonyoung had to be extra careful about not revealing his tattoo to Hyunmi while they FaceTimed, but he forgot all about it when he lifted his left hand to brush his hair back. Before he realised his mistake she was asking about it._ _ _ _ _ _

______She gasped. “Is that a tattoo on your hand?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“…No,” Soonyoung mumbled, quickly dropping his hand so she couldn’t see it._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Yes, it is!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Hyunmi was grinning. Soonyoung didn’t notice that it looked like she was forcing it a little._ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung sighed, and without meeting her eyes said, “Yes, it’s a tattoo.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Whose is it?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung took a deep breath and looked straight at the image of Hyunmi on his laptop screen. “Yours.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Her eyes widened._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I didn’t tell you because you’re all the way in America and I already lost you physically, I didn’t want to lose your friendship too.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Soonyoung blinked away the tears threatening to fall._ _ _ _ _ _

______Hyunmi didn’t say anything as she reached up to pull the sleeve of her t-shirt up, exposing a constellation tattoo on her shoulder._ _ _ _ _ _

______She smiled through her tears and said, “I guess we’re even.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Hyunmi spoke to her colleagues at the studio and showed them the videos she had of Soonyoung dancing._ _ _ _ _ _

______Three months later she picked Soonyoung up from the airport._ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update might not be so quick, university is getting busy again, but it will be another Seventeen ship. This is the only chapter with a prominent OC.
> 
> Thanks for reading :)


	3. unrequited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jihoon and Seungcheol.
> 
> It was unrequited.

“Don’t fall in love with me, okay?”

Jihoon was joking, Seungcheol knew that. But underneath the snarky grin and the teasing question he was serious, because Jihoon knew that he would never be able to feel that way about anyone, even Seungcheol. 

Jihoon always joked that his parents’ divorce had messed him up so much that he would never love anyone, never get another person’s tattoo, and while the messy end of that unhappy marriage did account for his trust issues he knew that his sexuality didn’t really result from his circumstances, he just was that way. 

As an asexual he got a lot of insensitive questions and was almost always told he was wrong, but being aromantic on top of that made people even more sure that he was making it up, after all, sex and romance were ‘what makes us human.’

Jihoon called bullshit on that (animals had sex and had their own version of romance for attracting mates, and there was nothing inherently ‘human’ about those two things except for the way that humans went about it) and he hated that argument most of all. He may have trust issues and maybe he was a bit emotionally detached, but he was a living, breathing man with a beating heart and, to some people’s disbelief, feelings, and that was what made him human.

After the divorce Jihoon realised that the best way to avoid getting hurt was to close himself off from people. He didn’t make friends, he didn’t open up to his parents, he didn’t let people get close. And mostly that worked, people decided he wasn’t worth the effort of trying to get him to open up and Jihoon was satisfied by that because it meant that these people wouldn’t disappoint him down the line.

Until Seungcheol. 

They met at university. Seungcheol sat himself down in the seat next to Jihoon in an early morning class one day and refused to leave him alone after that. 

Seungcheol understood that there must be a reason for Jihoon’s reluctance to make friends, so instead of instantly giving up when Jihoon glared at him and ignored his questions he kept coming back. Eventually Jihoon answered him, just to get him to shut up, but Seungcheol saw that as a victory. 

Seungcheol followed the younger boy around after that, never giving up on trying to get Jihoon to accept him as a friend. 

When Seungcheol told him this Jihoon had sighed and reluctantly said, “Fine, we can be friends. I guess.” 

 

 

It took a few months for Jihoon to feel comfortable enough around Seungcheol to explain why he never let people get close to him, why he didn’t trust people, why he didn’t have any friends besides Seungcheol.

And Seungcheol was the first person to ever believe him and not question him when he came out in response to the question of why he didn’t date. 

Instead, Seungcheol accepted Jihoon’s stuttered admission of, “I’m asexual and aromantic,” with a nod of his head.

“Thanks for telling me.” Seungcheol smiled softly. And that was it. No invasive questions, no judgement, no arguing. Jihoon tried not to reveal his shock at how Seungcheol carried on talking about divorce as though Jihoon hadn’t just come out to him.

“And, yeah, divorce really wrecks your head. And your emotions, I saw it with plenty people at school,” he continued. 

“Divorce is a bitch.”

It was a Friday night and they were sitting on Seungcheol’s dorm room floor, eating pizza and pretending that they didn’t both have tests to study for and assignments to finish. It was late and they were exhausted, and it felt quiet and comfortable enough in the room to share secrets. By this stage Jihoon was starting to feel okay about calling Seungcheol a friend and maybe opening up sometimes, but he still worried that one day Seungcheol would suddenly hate him and this would all have been for nothing. 

“I think you’re justified, you know,” Seungcheol mumbled through a mouth full of pizza. He swallowed before he carried on. “If my parents had gotten divorced I’d probably have a hard time opening up to people, too.”

“If two people who were married and had a kid couldn’t be open and trust each other…” Jihoon trailed off. 

Seungcheol nodded. He knew what Jihoon was trying to say. “Yeah. I get it.”

“And, obviously, relationships just aren’t my thing.”

“Right.”

They were silent for a while. 

“You know, you’re the first person who hasn’t told me that I’m either wrong or a freak?” Jihoon pretended to be busy breaking up a hard piece of pizza crust so he wouldn’t have to meet Seungcheol’s eyes.

“Wrong about what?”

“My sexuality.”

Jihoon kept crumbling up the crust.

Seungcheol shrugged. “Only you know what you are, nobody else can know it better than you. Why shouldn’t I believe you?”

That’s when Jihoon realised that Seungcheol trusted him.

That’s also when Jihoon realised that he trusted Seungcheol.

 

 

“Don’t fall in love with me, okay?”

They were watching a movie. 

Seungcheol laughed. “And why not?”

“Because you know I’ll never feel that way about anyone. Not even you.”

It was one of those cheesy rom-coms where the main characters are best friends and swore they didn’t want to be romantically involved but ended up that way at the end of the movie anyway. Seungcheol had pointed out that the characters resembled the two of them a little bit. 

Seungcheol laughed at Jihoon’s defensive response to his observation. 

“You’re not my type anyway,” he joked, ducking his head as Jihoon reached out to smack him.

It was true, Jihoon wasn’t his type. Seungcheol was generally attracted to confident, extroverted people, and Jihoon was one of the most insecure and introverted people he knew. Not that it was a bad thing, he found it endearing and he appreciated that Jihoon was comfortable with him. He just wasn’t attracted to that type of personality. 

But in a way Jihoon’s insecurity did almost draw Seungcheol in to him a little bit. Seungcheol cared about Jihoon and he wanted Jihoon to realise how great he was, that he was worth being friends with, that the people who’d hurt him in the past were the losers, and that Seungcheol would stick around. 

 

 

The following year Seungcheol met someone and fell in love and got their tattoo. 

It didn’t end well. 

 

 

Seungcheol was never the type to hold grudges. 

He figured that all experiences shaped him in some way, even the bad things, so he couldn’t really be angry about them because they made him who he was. Sure, sometimes he felt sad when he thought of the people he’d drifted apart from over the years, but he never regretted the relationships he’d had and he never held grudges against the people who hurt him. 

He had tattoos from three other people on his body, and only the last one had negative memories and emotions attached to it. Seungcheol never tried to remove it, or cover it, or even merely hide it so people wouldn’t ask about it if tattoos came up in conversation. He let it be, because it had happened and he was who he was because of it. 

That way that relationship ended changed Seungcheol. He was still the happy, friendly guy he’d always been but he started being more cautious with who he opened up to, who he trusted. He became a bit more like Jihoon. 

Jihoon was disturbed at how Seungcheol seemed to retract into himself after that break up, but he understood because he’d done the same thing after his parents’ divorce and when friends had ditched him in middle school. He was never good at being emotionally supportive, which was understandable considering he wasn’t exactly great at dealing with his own emotions, but Seungcheol had been there for him, consistently, since the day they met so even if it wasn’t a strength of his he would be there for his friend. 

“I get it now, you know?”

“What?” Jihoon asked, passing Seungcheol a mug of tea. 

“Why you don’t trust people.”

Jihoon didn’t reply so Seungcheol kept talking.

“I mean, I always understood but now I really _get it_ because I’m reluctant to trust anyone now.”

Jihoon smiled fondly at his friend. “Yeah, but I’m pretty sure it’s just temporary for you.”

Seungcheol shrugged. “Maybe, but I’m definitely going to be more… selective with who I trust like that in the future.”

And he was, but soon enough Seungcheol started to emerge out of his shell again and was almost back to how he’d been before. 

 

 

Maybe it was because he already trusted Jihoon when his bad breakup happened. Maybe it was because Jihoon had bigger trust issues. Maybe it was because Seungcheol had got a glimpse of what it was like to be Jihoon and so he understood how big of a deal it was that Jihoon trusted him. 

Maybe it was these three things and more. 

Whatever it was, Seungcheol realised that he was starting to feel more strongly towards Jihoon as the ends of their university careers loomed. 

He ignored his feelings at first; reminded himself that Jihoon was aromantic and argued with himself that he was just feeling like this now because he was able to relate to Jihoon better and people generally feel affection towards friends that they see a lot. 

Seungcheol spent an evening browsing through dating apps, trying to find someone to draw his attention away from Jihoon. He put off seeing Jihoon, hoping that maybe some distance would stop his feelings from intensifying. He even asked a friend to set him up on a blind date (it was a disaster). Nothing made his feelings recede. 

So Seungcheol changed tactics. He thought maybe if he spent more time with Jihoon he’d get tired of his friend’s company, that he’d start finding Jihoon’s habits annoying or that his feelings would magically disappear after a reminder of the friendship that was at stake. 

Because Seungcheol didn’t want to lose Jihoon, which would probably happen if he told Jihoon the truth about his feelings and then Seungcheol would become just another person that Jihoon would regret ever having trusted. After being the one person that Jihoon confided in, Seungcheol feared that admitting to his best friend that he was developing more-than-platonic-feelings for him would be the end of them. 

So Seungcheol held his tongue. He pushed down his feelings and pretended that all he felt for Jihoon was a friendly affection to be expected after a few years and many shared secrets. 

 

 

Seungcheol woke up with Jihoon’s tattoo the morning after they celebrated Jihoon’s employment. 

They’d gone out for dinner, Seungcheol’s treat, and they’d had maybe a little bit too much to drink. 

Jihoon had never been a big drinker because of how poor his alcohol tolerance was, so after a shot of soju and one beer he was slurring his words and smiling way more than was normal for him. 

He stumbled a lot on the walk home and leaned heavily on Seungcheol (who hadn’t wanted to let his drunk friend get into a taxi alone, and who didn’t have enough cash left anyway after paying for dinner) who walked him back to his apartment. 

Seungcheol tried to calm the swirling in his stomach and the heat rushing to his cheeks, but soon he was smiling as much as his drunk friend who was pressed against him. 

He loved seeing Jihoon smiling so much, even if it probably wasn’t a very conscious decision, and he loved even more having Jihoon trust him enough to let Seungcheol walk him home while he could barely walk straight. 

When they got to Jihoon’s door he turned to Seungcheol and _giggled_ before slurring out, “You know what, Seungcheol?”

Seungcheol was holding back his own laughter. “What, Jihoon?”

Jihoon sighed heavily and said, “You’re my most… best… friend, you know that? You’re the only person I like a lot. And you’re so annoying but other people are _more_ annoying.”

Seungcheol laughed heartedly as he unlocked Jihoon’s door. “I think you need a glass of water and your bed.”

Seungcheol had never felt so happy. Yes, Jihoon was drunk and probably wouldn’t even remember that he’d said that in the morning, but just the fact that he had said it meant that there must be some truth behind it and that made Seungcheol ecstatic. 

He made sure Jihoon drank a glass of water and left some painkillers on his nightstand before leaving and locking the door behind him.

He smiled until he fell asleep, and in the morning there was a little tattooed constellation on the palm of his left hand, directly below his ring finger. 

“Shit.”

 

 

He wore gloves the next time he met up with Jihoon, and it was winter so he didn’t even need to think up any excuse because it was cold enough for gloves anyway. 

 

 

It was more difficult when it started getting warmer. 

With them both having jobs now they texted more than they hung out together, so Seungcheol didn’t need to make sure the tattoo was always hidden because Jihoon wasn’t always around to see it, but not being able to unquestionably wear gloves whenever they met up made things complicated. 

Instead, Seungcheol made sure he always wore sweaters with long sleeves to cover the palms of his hands. 

When Jihoon noticed he laughed and said, “Did my fashion sense is rub off on you?” and flapped his own too-long sleeves at his friend. 

Seungcheol chuckled, hoping his nerves weren’t audible in his laugh, and shrugged. “It’s comfortable and practical, because sometimes spring weather seems warm but then it gets really cold and long sleeves can almost double as gloves.” 

Jihoon raised an eyebrow. “Uh… okay.”

Seungcheol wished he could slap himself without making himself seem even more insane.

 

 

It was inevitable that Jihoon would find out. Seungcheol was stupid to think he could keep the fact that he had his best friend’s tattoo on his hand a secret from said best friend forever. 

It was another Friday night they were spending together; another movie, another takeaway pizza. 

Seungcheol, too comfortable and having forgotten about the tattoo on his palm, pulled his sleeves up as he cleared away the first pizza box.

He immediately realised his mistake and froze, which turned out to be the real mistake. 

Jihoon looked up from his phone when he noticed Seungcheol freeze, still slightly bent over and holding a pizza box. 

“Cheol? You okay?”

Seungcheol quickly snapped out of it. 

“I’m fine!” he blurted out, voice unusually high, before quickly turning to head to the kitchen.   
“Wait, what’s that on your hand?”

It was like someone had poured ice down his throat and the cold was rapidly making its way down to his stomach. 

He could’ve lied. He could’ve said it was an ink mark from when his pen leaked earlier and he’d forgotten to scrub it off. He could’ve said it belonged to someone he met at a work event recently. He could’ve said he’d drawn it himself to trick his co-workers. 

He could’ve said anything, and maybe _that_ was the real mistake; saying nothing. 

“Cheol?”

Jihoon sounded worried, and a million thoughts flashed through Seungcheol’s head. 

Jihoon cared about him, and he cared about JIhoon. They trusted each other, they understood each other. Seungcheol had wanted to befriend Jihoon as soon as they met but he’d never imagined that the cold, distant boy he’d wanted to help feel less alone would become his closest friend. 

Maybe he should tell Jihoon? Yes, Jihoon was aromantic and would probably never fall in love with Seungcheol in the same way that Seungcheol was in love with Jihoon but maybe they could still be together, maybe they could make it work? And surely they could stay friends?

On the other hand, telling Jihoon could mean possibly losing Jihoon, especially considering he’d told Seungcheol not to fall in love with him and then Seungcheol went and did that anyway (not that he could really help it).

But before Seungcheol could decide whether he would risk being honest or not, Jihoon had crossed the room and was reaching out to take Seungcheol’s left hand with his right hand.

When he realised what the mark was he grinned happily and exclaimed, “It’s someone’s tattoo! Dude, why didn’t you tell me—“

Jihoon inhaled sharply. 

Seungcheol hung his head. He could fell the ice in his stomach spreading through his body, his heart beating wildly.

Jihoon opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

Eventually Seungcheol whispered, “I’m so sorry.”

Jihoon shook his head and gripped Seungcheol’s hand tighter. “That’s _my_ tattoo.”

Those three words were enough to confirm Seungcheol’s fear that his original instinct was right: Jihoon would not take this well, and he was about to lose his best friend. He felt like his lungs were shrivelling up, making it nearly impossible to breathe freely, and the tears in his eyes were making his vision blurry.

There was no way he could lie himself out of this situation now, not after Jihoon had seen the tattoo. He owed his friend an explanation; if he kept quiet there was no way he could fix this so he had to say something, but all he could manage was a mumbled, “Yes.”

Jihoon sighed and blinked to get rid of the tears he could feel forming. “How long?”

Seungcheol’s mind was screaming at him, begging him to say something, _anything_ , but he didn’t know what to say that could make this better. 

“ _How_ _long?_ ” Jihoon repeated through clenched teeth. 

As Seungcheol raised his head to look at Jihoon he felt the first tear make it’s way down his cheek. 

“I don’t know.”

Jihoon shook his head again, not satisfied with that answer. 

Seungcheol wiped away a tear and whispered, “I don’t know when exactly the feelings started.”

“When did the tattoo show up?”

“The morning after we went out to celebrate your new job. You were drunk and you told me I’m the only person you like a lot.”

Jihoon looked away, refusing to meet Seungcheol’s gaze, focusing on the tattoo on the other man’s hand. 

Neither of them said anything for a while.

“They match,” said Seungcheol. 

Jihoon let go of Seungcheol’s hand to look at his own tattoo; on the palm of his right hand under his ring finger. 

“That must mean something, right?” Seungcheol continued, his voice getting higher and louder. “How many people actually get tattoos in a place that matches the person they fall in love with? It has to mean something, Jihoon, it can’t just be a coincidence!”

Jihoon stayed silent. 

“Please.” Seungcheol’s voice was a whisper again. 

“Please, what?” Jihoon mumbled. 

Seungcheol shrugged, not sure himself what he was asking.

“Please fall in love with you?” Jihoon asked. He looked up to make eye contact for the first time since he’d noticed the tattoo on Seungcheol’s hand. “You know that will never happen, Seungcheol.”

It felt like the ice in Seungcheol’s stomach had cracked and was piercing through his organs. 

“It doesn’t have to!” Seungcheol couldn’t stop the sob from escaping. “You don’t have to love me back. We can pretend that this never happened, nothing has to change, I promise.”

Suddenly Jihoon was hurrying around the apartment, gathering up his things and then heading for the door. Seungcheol stood frozen. 

Jihoon stopped at the door. With his hand on the doorknob, ready to leave, without even looking back he said, “I trusted you.”

The past tense is what hurt Seungcheol the most. 

 

 

A week later Jihoon found Seungcheol sitting outside his front door when he got home from work. 

Seungcheol rushed to stand up when he approached and stood in front of the door so Jihoon couldn’t unlock it. 

“We need to talk about this.”

Jihoon laughed, but there was no humour in it. “There’s nothing to talk about.”

He shoved past Seungcheol to unlock the door. Before he could close it again Seungcheol had forced his way inside.

“Please, just listen?”

Seungcheol’s hopeful puppy eyes were always a weakness for Jihoon, and he hated that even though he was hurt and angry with Seungcheol he couldn’t say no to those big, pleading eyes. 

Jihoon sighed. “Five minutes.”

Silence. 

“Four minutes and fifty-four seconds…” Jihoon said, looking at his watch.

Seungcheol nodded and whispered, “I wish this had never happened. I didn’t want to fall in love with you, I just wanted to be your friend. I wanted to show you that you don’t have to push everyone away and that trusting people doesn’t always end in disaster. This was never supposed to happen, and I’m sorry.”

Jihoon kept his gaze on his watch, doing his best to avoid eye contact. 

“This doesn’t have to change anything,” Seungcheol continued. 

“But it does,” Jihoon replied, eyes closed. “This changes everything. I will always know that you want more than I can give, and I will always feel guilty because I can never return your romantic feelings. I do love you, Cheol, but differently to the way that you love me.”

Seungcheol hadn’t realised he was crying until he tasted salt on his lips. “I don’t care. I don’t care if you decide you hate me after this, or if you never feel the same for me, but I don’t want to lose your friendship.”

Jihoon was silent. 

“Please, Jihoon. This doesn’t have to be an issue, let me prove it.”

Jihoon looked up. “That’s five minutes. You should go.”

Seungcheol nodded, tears flowing freely. “Yeah.”

Jihoon watched as Seungcheol turned and placed his hand on the door handle and then just stood there. 

Against his better judgement Jihoon mumbled, “I’ll miss you.”

Seungcheol’s knuckles were white on the doorknob. “I’ll miss you, too.”

And then they stood there in silence. 

Jihoon didn’t want Seungcheol to leave. Seungcheol was the first person to ever accept him as he was, to never question him, to always be there for him. He didn’t want their friendship to end either, but he knew that he would never be able to feel at ease around Seungcheol knowing that his friend was in love with him. So, as much as it was breaking his heart to break Seungcheol’s, he knew that he had to do this, because it was better this way. He didn’t want Seungcheol to live with false hope and he didn’t want to be hurting his best friend every day when he couldn’t even return a loving glance. 

Eventually Seungcheol broke the silence. 

“Promise me something.”

Jihoon waited until Seungcheol continued before answering to be sure that it was something he could promise. 

“Promise that you won’t push people away, that you’ll let yourself trust people.”

Jihoon pondered that. He’d spent his whole life not trusting because that was easier and it kept him safe. He’d trusted Seungcheol and now this was happening, so what good could come from trusting anyone ever again? 

But, despite the hurt, he knew that it had been worth it because, at least for a while, he’d had a best friend who would’ve done anything for him. He figured that having something like that was worth the risk of heartbreak. 

“I promise.”

When Seungcheol closed the door behind him Jihoon counted to ten before he let the tears start falling. 

 

 

He thought many times about contacting Seungcheol, finding him and apologising, asking if they could be friends again. 

But Jihoon knew it was too late for that; Seungcheol probably had someone else. Even if he didn’t Jihoon knew he wouldn’t be able to handle the guilt of what he’d put them both through because of his orientation, something he’d be reminded of every time he looked at Seungcheol. 

He kept his promise to Seungcheol and let himself trust people. It wasn’t easy for him because every instinct told him not to, but he pushed past that and was glad when he did. He made friends, he was happy, and he was grateful that Seungcheol had forced his way in all those years ago. Some of the people Jihoon opened up to fell in love with him and gained his tattoo, but Jihoon never got any tattoos and only had own one on his right palm, beneath his ring finger. 

 

 

The tattoo thing wasn’t indicative of soulmates; if it was, then soulmates would have matching tattoos or something. The tattoos just appeared when you fell in love, returned or unrequited, and many people said soulmates weren’t real because of this, but Seungcheol maintained that Jihoon was his, and that was why when Jihoon’s tattoo appeared on his body it was in the same location as it was on Jihoon’s; on the palm of their hands, below their ring fingers. 

Seungcheol never got another tattoo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The position of their tattoos is so that if they held hands the tattoos would touch against each other, but that never happens (I know, I'm evil). 
> 
> Next update might take a while again because university is busy and then I have exams.


	4. inconceivable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeonghan and Joshua. 
> 
> It was inconceivable.

“It’s nice to meet you, Joshua. I’m Yoon Jeonghan.”

Joshua knew that; how could he not when Jeonghan was currently one of the most popular models in the world? As an employee at an international fashion magazine it would’ve been hard to miss the praise for Jeonghan circulating in the industry. 

But he didn’t say any of this, because that would be unnecessarily weird, so he just nodded and said, “Pleased to meet you.”

Joshua sat down, rubbed his sweaty palms over his knees (under the table where Jeonghan couldn’t see) and took a deep breath. He didn’t know why he was so nervous, he’d been waiting for an opportunity like this since he started working for the magazine. He’d been there nearly five years and this was the first time he’d been given the opportunity to interview somebody who was actually famous; previously he’d been given the little assignments and filler articles, but now he had the chance to prove himself and maybe land some bigger projects. But he’d been thrown in the deep end with this one. 

Interviewing Yoon Jeonghan was incredibly intimidating. Jeonghan was in all the biggest magazines and walked the runway for some of the most revered brands. He was known for his androgynous features and for looking amazing in both masculine and feminine clothes. He enchanted everyone who met him, and even though they’d just shaken hands Joshua knew he was already completely captivated by the model.

Jeonghan smiled at him across the table and Joshua felt his heart start beating faster. 

“Uh,” he stammered. “Would you mind if I recorded this interview? If you say anything you want cut from the article you can tell me.”

_He’s just a normal guy, _he reminded himself. _Just because the world knows who he is doesn’t make him scary. Treat him like a normal person. _____

____Jeonghan smiled his dazzling smile and said, “No, I don’t mind.”_ _ _ _

____Joshua placed his cellphone on the table and tapped the screen to start the voice recorder._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____The interview went better than Joshua could ever have hoped._ _ _ _

____After just a few minutes it hardly felt like an interview anymore. The conversation flowed so easily that it felt more like two friends catching up after a long time. As the interview progressed, Joshua felt his anxiety melt away. Jeonghan was so easy to talk to, and so genuine for someone so famous. The few people Joshua had interviewed in the past had all been Instagram models or beauty YouTubers, and, while they each had their own dedicated fanbase, they were not well known amongst the wider public like Jeonghan was. Ironically, those bloggers had acted like spoiled brats when Joshua had met with them. They were difficult and unpleasant to talk to, and Joshua had to force himself not to roll his eyes at almost everything they said, but he hung on Jeonghan’s every word, captivated by his sincerity._ _ _ _

____More than an hour had passed when Jeonghan’s phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket to answer the call and his face fell._ _ _ _

____“My manager,” he explained as he swiped the screen to answer._ _ _ _

____Joshua had to try really hard not to stare at Jeonghan while he waited for the call to end._ _ _ _

____“I’m sorry,” Jeonghan sighed as he shoved the phone back into his jacket pocket. “I need to get going. I have a shoot tonight and they want me there early for hair and makeup.”_ _ _ _

____Obviously the interview couldn’t go on forever, but Joshua was still disappointed that his time with the model was over._ _ _ _

____“Oh, that’s no problem,” he said as he unlocked his phone to stop and save the recording. “I didn’t really ask any direct questions, but I think you answered everything I was going to ask anyway.”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan chuckled and looked down at his lap, suddenly shy. “Thanks for this.”_ _ _ _

____Joshua blinked, confused. “For what?”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan shrugged. “This. The interview.”_ _ _ _

____“Oh.”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan pushed his hair back, making Joshua’s breath catch in his throat._ _ _ _

____“Most interviews are really draining, and even though I’m being asked about myself they feel really impersonal. Sometimes they’re more like interrogations,” he huffed out a humourless laugh. “Always asking me about diet and travel necessities. But I felt like you actually give a shit, and not just because I’m famous, you know?”_ _ _ _

____Joshua was shocked. Of course he’d done his best to make Jeonghan feel comfortable during their conversation but he didn’t realise that it would mean so much to the model._ _ _ _

____“Oh, um, it was my pleasure, really. I enjoyed talking to you.”_ _ _ _

____Now Jeonghan looked surprised._ _ _ _

____“But… we talked about, like, normal stuff.” It sounded like a question. “You didn’t ask about my celebrity crush or my personal trainer or if I want to be a girl because I wear skirts sometimes.”_ _ _ _

____“Well…” Joshua wasn’t sure how to respond in a way that wasn’t incredibly cheesy, so he blushed and said, “There’s more to you than all of that. And I think it’s more interesting to hear about who inspires you and what your goals are than what your workout schedule is.”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan beamed. “Thanks, Joshua.”_ _ _ _

____Joshua shrugged and said, “No problem.”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan stood and grabbed his coat off the back of his chair. He turned to Joshua one last time and said, “I hope we can do this again one day.”_ _ _ _

____“Sure, I’d love to interview you again—”_ _ _ _

____“I didn’t mean as an interview.”_ _ _ _

____Jeonghan winked before he turned to leave and Joshua watched, mouth gaping, as the model breezed out of the cafe._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____Joshua spent much longer than necessary transcribing the interview, just so he could listen to their conversation over and over again._ _ _ _

____He was supposed to delete the voice memo after the article had been written (it was in the interview etiquette guidelines the magazine gave to the writers) but nobody ever checked that he had, so he never bothered._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____They met again when Joshua was sent to New York to cover a fashion show for the magazine._ _ _ _

____He hadn’t checked to see if Jeonghan would be there or not; it was last minute that he was even going to the event (his colleague had a “personal matter” come up and couldn’t go), so he was pleasantly surprised when Jeonghan appeared on the catwalk._ _ _ _

____Joshua applauded enthusiastically when Jeonghan walked past him. He knew it was unlikely that the model would notice him sitting in the audience when he was focused on keeping his expression neutral and not tripping on the runway, and it was even more unlikely that Jeonghan would remember him, so Joshua resolved to just enjoy the show and hope that maybe Jeonghan hadn’t forgotten him completely._ _ _ _

____When the show was over and Joshua was standing to leave he felt a sudden pressure on his arm._ _ _ _

____He turned his head to find a lady with a backstage pass around her neck and a clipboard under one arm._ _ _ _

____“You Joshua?” she asked._ _ _ _

____Caught off guard by this stranger knowing who he was, all Joshua could do was nod his head._ _ _ _

____“You’re wanted backstage.”_ _ _ _

____And then she was walking away._ _ _ _

____Joshua stood frozen for a second. What could possibly be the reason that he was asked backstage? He didn’t know anybody working at the event. Unless…_ _ _ _

____No. He wouldn’t get his hopes up._ _ _ _

____The woman turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. “You coming or not?”_ _ _ _

____“Yes!” He coughed. “Yes, I’m just a bit confused.”_ _ _ _

____Her face remained expressionless. When she realised that Joshua wasn’t going to follow unless prompted she raised an eyebrow. “I have other things to do that are actually part of my job. Are you going to just stand there or can I take you back?”_ _ _ _

____Joshua blushed and hurried to catch up with her, embarrassed that he was wasting her time._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____ _ _

____“Joshua! Hi!”_ _ _ _

_____Oh. ____ _ _ _

______Jeonghan’s smile was so wide that Joshua wondered how it wasn’t hurting him._ _ _ _ _ _

______He grinned back. “I didn’t think you’d be able to see me in the audience. Or that you’d remember me.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Of course I remember you!” The way Jeonghan averted his eyes and the way his cheeks went slightly pink gave away the fact that he was just as shy as Joshua underneath his layers of confidence._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan turned to the coat rack to pick up his jacket. “I didn’t know you were going to be here.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“My colleague had had something come up, so they sent me instead,” Joshua explained._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan shrugged on his jacket and smiled, the blush gone and his confidence mostly back._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Well, I’m glad you’re here.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Joshua laughed shyly and sounded much more flirty than he intended with his reply. “Did you miss me that much?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan laughed, properly laughed, and it was one of the most beautiful sounds Joshua had ever heard._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan smirked at him and said, “You made a good impression when we met.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______They stood in silence for a minute, and Joshua was so grateful that they were the only two people in the room. He usually found silences like this quite awkward, but somehow it was comfortable._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan crossed the room to Joshua and opened the door._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Would you like to get dinner with me?”  
Jeonghan looked so hopeful that it nearly broke Joshua’s heart._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I would love to, but I have to get to the airport,” he replied. “My flight back to Seoul is in a few hours.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan’s smile faltered for a second, but it was back before Joshua was even sure it had wavered._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Next time then.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“It’s a date.” Joshua wanted to smack himself._ _ _ _ _ _

______But then Jeonghan laughed again and Joshua felt a bit less like an idiot._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______They exchanged numbers. Jeonghan had insisted on a selfie before Joshua had to rush off to the airport and said that while his phone was out Joshua should just add his number._ _ _ _ _ _

______Joshua quickly punched in his number and saved his name with the magazine he worked for._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeonghan had scoffed and said, “Like I’d forget how I know the only Joshua I have saved.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______He didn’t expect the model to text or call, but when he managed to hail a taxi outside Incheon airport his phone vibrated._ _ _ _ _ _

_______“I’ll be back in Seoul next week. Maybe we can have dinner then? -Jeonghan” ____ _ _ _ _ _

________Joshua nearly dropped his phone and then hit his head on the door as he climbed into the car._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He spent a few minutes typing out replies and deleting them before settling on, _“That sounds great! Let me know when and where.” _____ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________He was very tempted to send kisses or smiley faces and more explanation points, but he decided that would look too overexcited and immature._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Joshua saved the contact and held back from putting a heart-eyes emoji next to Jeonghan’s name._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Jeonghan’s schedule changed, and being back in Seoul became stopping over to catch another flight almost immediately after landing. He headed off to Japan for shoots and interviews, and their dinner was postponed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________They texted._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Some days it was just things like, _“I saw the cutest dog today!” _with a picture attached.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Other days they stayed up way too late talking about everything and nothing, and then Joshua would struggle to stay awake in meetings the next day and Jeonghan would be scolded by his manager for looking tired._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________After a long day Jeonghan asked if he could call Joshua. He was nervous, but Joshua agreed and he found that talking on the phone was so much better than just texting Jeonghan. After a few phone calls Joshua stopped feeling so intimidated by the model, so when Jeonghan asked if they could try FaceTime he agreed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Months passed and either Joshua had appointments when Jeonghan was back in Seoul or Jeonghan was too busy to see Joshua before he left again, but it didn’t bother Joshua as much as he thought it would. Being able to video chat or text Jeonghan whenever he wanted almost made up for not seeing him in person, but it also meant that every time they talked Joshua felt his silly crush get a little bit stronger._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Jeonghan was in London when he FaceTimed Joshua out of the blue._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“I’m cutting my hair!” he declared excitedly, grinning from ear to ear._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________One of the first times they’d talked on the phone Jeonghan had revealed that he was tired of being known for his long hair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“That’s all people see anymore, that’s how they know me. Not because of who I am or the things I’ve done but because of what my hair looks like.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“You’re a model, Jeonghan, isn’t that the whole idea? That people know you for your looks?” Joshua had asked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Jeonghan had sighed and answered, “Yeah, but it still gets to me. I want to be able to change my hair like other people, but it’s what everyone knows so I feel like I can’t.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________They’d spoken a few times about Jeonghan’s image, about whether he would still have his androgynous vibe if he cut his hair. Joshua said maybe not. Jeonghan said that maybe he didn’t care, because then maybe people would appreciate him for other reasons._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________But now he was cutting it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“What did your manager say?” Joshua asked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Nothing. I said I was going for coffee, you’re the only person who knows I’m doing this.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Joshua’s heart fluttered a little bit at that._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Jeonghan kept his phone propped up against the mirror the whole time so that Joshua could watch his transformation._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________When the stylist was done Jeonghan happily ran his fingers through his much shorter hair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“How does it look?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________It looked perfect. Joshua thought Jeonghan had never looked better, and although his long hair had been beautiful the short haircut looked _right _.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Like the real you,” he said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua had never seen Jeonghan smile so brightly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________When Joshua got changed for bed later that night he found a constellation on his left shoulder._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He didn’t tell Jeonghan._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua woke up to headlines about Jeonghan the next morning._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He expected that everyone would be either mourning or celebrating the haircut, but that news earned barely a line in the articles. The main focus of the tabloids was the constellation tattoo on Jeonghan’s neck that was only visible now that his long hair was gone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Fans and entertainment news companies were desperately trying to figure out who the tattoo belonged to, some even asking for the person to reveal their identity. There were threads comparing what was visible on Jeonghan’s neck with tattoos other people had to try and match them to a potential source. Others were trying to work out how long the tattoo had been on the model’s neck, referring back to shoots where he’d had his hair up and debating whether or not it could have been edited out or covered with makeup._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua spent ages scrolling through Twitter, trying to find an article that had a clear enough picture, but even the least fuzzy one didn’t show the whole tattoo; half of it was covered by the collar of Jeonghan’s shirt. He wanted to believe it was his tattoo on Jeonghan’s neck, but with half of it not visible and the rest of it out of focus he couldn’t be sure._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He saw no reason not to ask Jeonghan whose tattoo it was other than the possibility of finding out it wasn’t his and getting his heart broken, but he figured it was worth the risk. Either it was his and he could reveal the one on his shoulder, or it wasn’t his and he could hide the constellation on his body forever and continue his friendship with the model as though nothing had happened. Ultimately, Joshua decided the risk of heartbreak was worth it, because having Jeonghan in his life made everything better and he didn’t want to loose him, even if his feelings weren’t returned._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua asked about it when they FaceTimed the next day._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan blushed and smiled shyly, looking down at his lap as he answered._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I thought you might ask, the paparazzi pictures weren’t that clear.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua shrugged. “You don’t have to tell me.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan shook his head. He lifted his gaze so he was looking right at Joshua through the screen and took a deep breath._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“It’s yours.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua felt like he was levitating off his chair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Oh,” was all he could bring himself to say in response._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He knew there was a good chance it was his after seeing the parts that were visible in the bad quality pictures, but Joshua had tried his best not to get his hopes up. Every time he thought about Jeonghan he’d had to remind himself that there was a possibility that the tattoo wasn’t his and that his heart could get broken, but hearing the truth felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He felt like he could breathe again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________The corner of Jeonghan’s lips curved up into a shy smile and he averted his eyes again when he asked, “Are you going to say anything else?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua sighed and adjusted his grip on his phone so he could tug the collar of his t-shirt to the side, exposing the constellation on his shoulder to Jeonghan._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I have yours.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan gasped and Joshua chuckled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________When their eyes met through the screen again they were both smiling, eyes sparkling._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________But Joshua’s smile faded quickly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“What’s wrong?” Jeonghan asked, concern evident in his voice and eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“You’re probably not going to be back for a while,” Joshua explained. “And…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“And?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua took a shaky breath. “I don’t know if something between us could work if I never got to see you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan hummed in understanding._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“When are you coming back?” Joshua asked. “Properly. Not for a twenty-minute layover.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Right now,” Jeonghan replied, standing up from where he was sitting. He walked across his hotel room to grab his suitcase before dropping it on the bed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“But you have a shoot tomorrow!” Joshua reminded him. “You can’t just leave!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan propped his phone up on the desk in the room so he could start throwing clothes into the suitcase._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“You’re more important.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“No,” Joshua argued. “This is your career, Jeonghan. Stay until you’ve done the shoot, please.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Don’t you want me to come back?” Jeonghan asked, pausing with a pair of jeans in one hand and some socks in the other._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua nodded. “Of course I do, but I don’t want you to lose a job or ruin your reputation.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan’s shoulders sagged. “Okay.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I wish you were here now, but you can’t just bail on a shoot. And you need to book a ticket.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan grabbed his laptop from the bedside table. “I’ll book one now. I’m going to be on the first flight to Seoul after that shoot, I promise.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________It was a rush, and his manager was not happy that he was hurrying back to Seoul and cancelling appointments, but Jeonghan kept his promise to Joshua._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Joshua stood at the gate, waiting for the model to arrive, surrounded by reporters and paparazzi. Jeonghan hadn’t said anything about returning to Seoul, but someone had taken pictures of him arriving at the airport and boarding his flight and released them on Twitter, so of course the press showed up to be there for his return and to pester him about his constellation tattoo (and the haircut, but that was less interesting now that Jeonghan had a tattoo). Joshua had managed to push his way to the front of the crowd so that Jeonghan would see him as soon as he walked through the automatic doors, and every time they slid open he held his breath._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Finally, when they opened for the fifth time, he saw Jeonghan._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________The reporters got louder, clamouring for Jeonghan’s attention over the sound of camera shutters._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jeonghan ignored all of them and made a beeline for Joshua, and as soon as he was close enough wrapped his arms around the other man’s waist._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I missed you,” he whispered against Joshua’s neck, and somehow Joshua heard him above the chaos in the airport._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I missed you, too.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Would you kill me if I kissed you right now?” Jeonghan asked with a smirk._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Instead of answering him, Joshua leaned in and softly pressed his lips to Jeonghan’s._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took much longer than I thought it would. I started this chapter in January but I had limited time because I had a job then, and my mum and I moved in with my grandparents for a few weeks and then university started again. Things always get busy and stop me from writing. 
> 
> I was going to make this chapter angsty too but then a friend asked me (*cough* threatened *cough*) to make it happy so I did.

**Author's Note:**

> Maybe one day when I have time I'll turn this into a full length story and have the storylines all meet somehow but I felt like just having the stand alone chapters would be best for now.


End file.
